Since the end of my first week in post time could not have passed more quickly. One of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned in these past 3 weeks (since my last post) is how to pass a day when you have nothing to do. Everyday I’ve learned to make an event about the smallest of tasks; today for example, posting on my blog.
In the most recent news I spent the 4th of July weekend in the capital. The embassy hosts a 4th of July party where they serve hot dogs, hamburgers, apple pie, etc. It was a delight to see all the other volunteers. It was the first time since swearing in.
The Saturday before last I was forced to find a new housing situation due to complications in the home. I was very stressed at first because I had only 4 days, it is in the middle of the tourist season and I had a limited budget. Peace Corps came down to help me though and by Wednesday I was moved into my own apartment. The apartment is not very large, but it has all the space I need. It is very new so all the appliances and furniture are nice. On top of all that it is on the 7th floor across the street from the beach. It has an amazing view of the sea and gives me yet another reason to be hated among other Peace Corps volunteers.
Work is going well. Very slow now, I don’t have much to do at my main post, but I spend the afternoons at the organization World Vision helping them with sponsorship paperwork. They have internet and air conditioning there and it’s a good place to power through the hot afternoons.
This last week I’ve been spending most of my free time outfitting my apartment. While it has a lot of furniture it lacks the necessities. This is the first time I’ve lived alone and I must say I’m a big fan. I’ve never before been excited to get home and clean. Amazing what having a place for yourself will do to some people.
Tomorrow a couple of my friends plan to come to Vlore for my birthday weekend. More will come Friday as well. It will be the first time I have visitors in my new apartment and I expect it will not be the last before the summer is over.
Aside from the chaos of the last three weeks things have been great. I’ve learned to slow myself down to match the pace of what is around me and it has helped in ways I can’t describe. Every time I post I say I can’t believe I’ve been here as long as I have, but it is the dead honest truth. I was so lucky to talk to my brother yesterday. He was the first person from the states I’ve spoken to in 4 months. That as the first time I’ve realized how long I’ve been here.
I plan to take pictures of my place once I feel I can call it home. I will post pictures of it shortly thereafter. I hope things back in the states are going well. I miss you all and much from America. You are all in my thoughts daily.

Week 1

Another late update and again I offer my apologies. The last month I have been focused on finishing training and getting moved in and accustomed to my site. The last two weeks of training were constant sessions that really required nothing but my presence. These two weeks were both fun and numbing. I found myself often with my friends, but also wary about the coming transition which has been mentioned to be the most difficult of all a volunteers service.

Swearing in was anticlimactic and nothing really set in until a few days into site. I moved in to my permanent site a week ago and this has been the longest week I have experienced since I left the states. I was hoping that freshness of the city would help pass the time, I was wrong. The time has started to take a toll on me and I feel as though I’m going through my first “down” moment here.

The difference is not necessarily the lack of friends to visit with but all throughout training every day we were kept busy with something. I never noticed the passing of time until I came to site. Also, things have really started to sink in. The two years has come into perspective and being completely alone for a long period of time is not something I’m completely comfortable with yet.

However, in contrast I think I have one of the best site placements. I was lucky enough to be a walk away from some of the nicest beaches in the country and in a city large enough to keep me occupied when there is nothing else to do. I couldn’t be happier that I brought my guitar now that I have this free time on my hands.

Work now is going a little slow because of elections and other various issues that steal attention away from things that I can help contribute. Because of the absence of work in my main post I have sought it out elsewhere. I plan to help an NGO here in town with camps they sponsor for underprivileged children by being a camp counselor.

With more free time I hope to be able to update this blog more often, I know I have heard from you that check it often to see if I have updated and I hope that I will be able to do a better job at keeping up in the future.

Pictures from our field day are on their way...

Group Community Project

All 40 of the volunteers are split into groups of about 5 or 6 and live in different villages. Each group was required to design and implement a community project. It serves as more of a practice on how to build relationships, plan and work with Albanians, and assess resources available. Our group decided that sense we had classes in the high school everyday, but had little opportunity to speak with the students that we should include them into our project. Also, one of the volunteers' host father is the director of the hospital. So naturally we wanted to utilize that resource. We were "planning" on having the director of the hospital come to the school and speak for 10-15 minutes about being healthy/exercise/pollution etc. then follow it up with a field day which would include several American games. ( the egg toss, 3-legged race, and the bat spin relay.)

We thought we had communicated that we wanted 12 students from each grade to participate in the competition, but unfortunately instead of having around 50 students show up we had around 300. There were far too many people for the director to speak and it was very difficult to keep them all out of the way when we wanted to have the games. However, I'm not sure the kids have ever had an event like that planned for them because everyone wanted to be in it and I think everyone had a great time. It was definitely nice to finally interact with the kids who had been so curious about us for so long.

It's been a while

Thursday, May 17, 2007:

Eeep! I just looked at the date of my last post and feel the need to offer my apologies to anyone who has yet to lose interest in my very slowly developing blog. I would offer excuses but I’m afraid I have none. I’ve been quite busy and that has allowed me to fall into somewhat of a routine. Things have also been quite uneventful. I think the initial culture shock wore off and the pile of work on my desk has piled up…both aren’t very conducive to trying to write often. This weekend will mark two months and its past like a blink of the eye. My training is starting to wrap up and boy and I ready to be at my post. Last weekend I took a trip to my future site and I couldn’t be more pleased. Driving through the western flats of Albania is not very appealing if you’re seeking out good scenery, but about 5 minutes before you get to the coastal city of Vlore the foothills turn into mountains and the dry arid fields turn into lush green hills. The road bends around a few hills and it offers the first views of the Adriatic Sea and the city. The city itself is nothing out of the ordinary but its location is certainly something to write home about. (or post in your blog about) I was invited to be at the event planned by the municipality that kicks off the summer season. We spent most of the day at the beach swimming, playing cards and jumping off of the old communist dictator’s seaside house into the water. Unfortunately I did not take any pictures so I cannot yet post them, but I will be living there for two years so rest assured…they will be posted.
I suppose since it’s been nearly a month I haven’t yet posted about what my job in Vlore will be. I’ve been assigned to work in the Bashki (municipality) in the department of tourism.

This is what was given to me in a packet describing my service:

The PCV (Peace Corps Volunteer) will be expected to work with four priority areas as follows:
1. Tourism development
2. Cultural Preservation
3. Youth development
4. NGO coordination

Specific Job Tasks:

Working with Youth Center
Helping and coordinating youth efforts to participate in the process of improving the transparency of the Bashkia toward the citizens in Vlora.
Participation of the youth in improving the Cultural services
Helping and coordinating the mobilization of the students of Vlora University and high schools also
helping in organization and coordination of Youth activities in Vlora
Sharing the American views on youth development with Vlora young people.
Working on tourism
Helping the day to day operations of the tourism office
The coordination of the info gathering and sharing among NGOs and Tourism sector of bashkia and other related entities
Helping with development and the process of publishing a news letter
Helping the process and find the appropriate ways of gathering information from connected entities
Coordinate the process of getting students involved in tourism issues
Help in staff management
Help in internship involvement
Help in preparing and implementing the seasonal tourism activities
Working with Non for Profit organizations
Coordinating the activities and strengthening links between bashkia and NPOs
Helping in the process of needs assessment and priority setting of the NPO sector in Vlora
Working with Programming department
Helping the process of public participation and urban planning

I’m afraid this post has become dry quite quickly. Really the only exciting story that I can offer is my experience killing our dinner. About three nights ago my mother came into my room sharpening a knife. I was reading but she told me to come outside. I followed her and there was my host brother holding a chicken. She handed me the knife and told me I had to kill it. I think she meant they wanted me to. I was pretty reluctant at first since I had never done something like that before; eventually I ended up doing it. I had always heard the phrase “they’re running around like a bunch of chickens with their heads cut off” but I never had the opportunity to actually see a chicken run around with its head cut off…until then. I have to say I’m shocked. I definitely thought it was something that lasted no more than a few seconds.
Well a few hours and a good chicken soup later it made for a good story.
The pictures I have posted along with this entry are from the town I am spending my training in. I did not take these pictures so I need to give credit to one Robert Adamski. I also want to thank everyone who has left me a comment. I haven’t had the time to post but I have read what you have written and it truly makes my day every time I read one. Thank you.
I hope you all are doing well and I hope to hear more comments!

To my devoted fans...

Thank you so much for the posts and encouragement. It is very much appreciated. I have much to post about but am extremely busy, so my apologies. I found out my placement for the next two years yesterday. I am going to be working in Vlore, a large Mediterranean city on the sea. I will be working in the Bashkia (municipality) helping with tourism and cultural preservation. I will be sure to write more about it this week. I will not have an opportunity to use the internet until the week after next.
I'm sure I will have lots to report on my next postings.

Again, thank you for all the comments, I love and miss you all.

Michael

Weekend memories

Sunday, April 08, 2007:

I find myself accepting the fact that this place is my home more and more every day. This is my third full weekend in country and the people and country is growing on me, more than I probably know. This weekend several of us decided to host our first volunteer social; inviting all the other volunteers to our city in hopes to sit around, have some wine, good food, and conversations that could be about anything and everything.
Yesterday we had 17 people come, which is about half of the whole group. There is a nice little restaurant on the end of the lake that is away from town that has a very nice patio. We sat outside for a few hours to just socialize. More often than not I found myself in between groups of conversations just listening, just watching, just taking in everything; it was a comfortable seclusion. It was great to see other volunteers, and have an event that was not mandatory for the Peace Corps.
Today Rob, one of my site mates, and I took the hour furgon trip into Elbasan for a tour of the city from a volunteer who is currently serving there. I’ve tried to think about how to describe the city, but I’m afraid my words won’t give it justice. The history of this place is phenomenal.
On the way home we happened to catch a furgon home with an English speaking Albanian. After answering many of his questions on the drive home we invited him to coffee to continue the conversation. It is very humbling to hear some of the stories these people have to share. This particular man is married, his wife lives in the same village as I do, but he is forced to work in Greece 9 months out of the year because of the lack of jobs in Albania. He rarely sees his family and works as many hours as he can. Sadly this story is one of many that exist in Albania. It is so difficult to respond to someone who is searching for opportunity, while I’m handed an opportunity of a lifetime on a silver platter. How can I not come off as condescending or arrogant?
While the lack of money and the existence of poverty punches you in the face when you step off the plane, what you learn once you’ve spoken with a few Albanians is that they are very wealthy in love. The pride they have in their country, the love they have for their family, and respect they have for the people and culture is worth more than all the money in the world to these people. And I cannot begin to describe how much I admire that.